Intercity, express bus fares to rise March 2

Intercity bus fares will rise 5.8 percent and those of express buses will go up 4.3 percent from March 2, the first hike since August 2010.

The Land, Transportation and Maritime Affairs Ministry on Friday said the minimum intercity bus fare will be raised from 1,200 won (1.11 U.S. dollars) to 1,300 won (1.20 dollars). The Seoul-Yeosu line fare will rise 5.3 percent from 24,400 (22.61 dollars) to 25,700 won (23.82 dollars), and that of the East Seoul Terminal-Chuncheon line will go up 6.3 percent from 6,300 (5.84 dollars) to 6,700 won (6.21 dollars).

Fares for express buses running from Seoul to Busan will be raised by 2.7 percent from 22,000 (20.39 dollars) to 26,000 won (24.10 dollars), and that of the Seoul-Gwangju line will rise 3.6 percent from 16,900 (15.66 dollars) to 17,500 won (16.22 dollars). The fare for the Seoul-Daejeon line will increase by 3.3 percent from 9,200 (8.53 dollars) to 9,500 won (8.8 dollars).

A ministry official called the raise inevitable due to rising oil and personnel expenses.